To Love The Wolf
by momoxtoshiro
Summary: Sequel of To Catch The Wolf! When Ryoushi and Ryouko finally get to go out on their 'date' what could possibly go wrong? Or right? ;3


**I'm back again! Here is the requested sequel for To Catch The Wolf that you guys wanted! I'm so thrilled you all asked me to write it after all! :3 Yay for Ryoushi and Ryouko! Slight OOC warning! :X**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Ookami-san to Shichinin no Nakamatachi.

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To Love The Wolf

Snow was still covering the ground just as it had been a week ago.

Ryoushi had been relieved to see Ryouko back in school after he had visited her and found her sick in bed with a fever. As the weekend came nearer, Ryoushi got more and more eager every moment at the thought of getting to go out alone with her.

Time flew by for the week, but now that it was Saturday, he prayed that time go as slow as it wanted so that he could savor this rare opportunity.

Ryoushi slid his black coat on over his clothes as he put on his shoes and gathered Elizabeth and Françoise's leashes. Hooking them onto the Akita's collars, he herded them out the front door and headed toward Ryouko and Ringo's apartment.

The air was particularly chipper today, even colder than last week and Ryoushi was thankful for the gloves that kept his hands warm from the biting air. The dogs scampered along unfazed because of their thick pelts as they followed him down the sidewalk.

He made his way slowly to the designated building and sat down on a nearby bench, letting go of the leashes to let the dogs play while he waited for his company to arrive.

The sun was partially hidden behind thick cotton clouds and off to one direction the clouds were darker. He hoped that it would not snow any time soon; he refused to let the _weather_ of all things get in the way of his one perfect day.

A few moments later, the doors behind him slid open and he turned to see Ryouko emerging from the building, dressed in her usual gray clothing. Ryoushi stood up and waved to her and she visibly blushed for a moment before nodding in acknowledgement and making her way over to him.

"Ryouko-san." He greeted as she met him. "Are you feeling better?" he wondered.

"Yes I am, Ryoushi." She chuckled lightly. "You've asked me that every day this week in school as well." She reminded him.

"Oh. Right." He scratched his head in embarrassment. "I just wanted to make sure. D-Don't you have a coat?" he asked.

"You're starting to sound just like Ringo." She sighed. "But nah. It's not even that cold really. I'll be fine." Somehow her words sounded like they were asking for a challenge but Ryoushi did not want to be pushy by asking her to reconsider. "Well then, is there anywhere in particular you'd like to go?"

"It doesn't really matter." She replied. "I mean we're just walking the dogs, right?"

"Oh. Yeah. Right."He just seemed to recall that this was merely supposed to be a normal walk, not a fantasy date. "Then let's just go around town for a little while."

"S…Sure." Ryouko compensated. The dogs perked up as they noticed her and dashed over to the new arrival, jumping up and barking happily. "Aw look how cute you two are!" She got down on one knee and patted each dog on the head before ruffling each one's ears and then kissing their heads.

Never before had Ryoushi wanted to be a dog so badly.

Ryouko stood as Ryoushi took up the leashes again and they all began walking through the snow to get to the sidewalk. Ryouko took a deep breath and let the chilled air cleanse her lungs, letting it out in a large puff of white. Ryoushi got an idea then as he watched her walking beside him, her hands dangling at her sides.

"Ryouko-san?"

"Hm?" Her reply was somehow more…feminine than he would have expected.

"Would you like to walk one of them?" he offered.

"H-Huh? Me?" she pointed a finger at herself to clarify. Ryoushi nodded. "A-Ah i-if you'd be okay with that." She said as though she had to now that he had asked, but he obviously saw right through her, yet kept it to himself.

He handed Ryouko Elizabeth's leash and the girl's eyes sparkled as she took it from him. It was almost like she was a completely different person now that she had this huge responsibility on her hands. "Hold the leash with your left hand." Ryoushi instructed her as he switched Françoise's leash to his right. "They like to be next to each other." _And they're not the only ones_. He added to himself.

"Right." Ryouko did as she was told and the two Akitas pranced joyfully next to one another. Ryoushi would have liked to be able to be a little closer to Ryouko, but just being this close to her was more than enough to satisfy him.

As they walked around the town at a carefree pace, Ryoushi could not help but spot couple after couple of teenagers, either walking hand in hand or cuddling together on benches or at a café. He wondered if Ryouko noticed this as well, but if she did she gave away no visible signs. But the one thing that bugged Ryoushi above all others was that in every example of a couple that he saw, the boy was always keeping the girl warm.

The green-haired boy felt like a complete moron letting his girl walk around with not so much as a scarf to keep her warm. _Er. Rather, she's not exactly _my_ girl either…_ he corrected himself.

The two of them circled around the street corners, somewhat of an awkward atmosphere bubbling between them for neither had spoken so much as a word since their departure. But somehow the panting and occasional barks from the dogs made it acceptable not to have to say anything at all, though.

The sky began to darken gradually and Ryoushi knew that it would be a wise idea to start heading home soon. Even though the day had not gone exactly as either of them had planned, they were still both content just being in each other's company. They both seemed to be thinking the same thing as their eyes suddenly met and the two of them nodded in silent agreement.

Flurries began to spiral down as they began to make their way back. Ryoushi kept stealing glances at the girl beside him, but she seemed completely unfazed by the cold flakes. Not a shiver went over her bare arms even as the wind gusted past them, making him shudder. Even though it was obvious that she seemed fine, he felt compelled to ask.

"R-Ryouko-san? Would you like to stop by at the café for a while?"

"Huh?" she tilted her head back to glance at him before thinking over his invitation. "O-Okay." She agreed with a small stutter. Ryoushi blinked in surprise at her positive response since he had been expecting a prideful denial.

"O-Okay." He echoed. "Great!" He grinned as he saw the café not too far ahead of them. _We're in luck_. He intended to take an outside table, since he was unwilling to leave the dogs outside alone; it would just be nice to at least have an umbrella over their heads and some hot tea or coffee in their stomachs. But as they neared the small building, his spirits sank as he saw that it was closed.

"Great." He mumbled. "Sorry about that."

"What's there to apologize for?" she chuckled. "It's not like _you_ closed it. Here, let's take a break for a minute." She gestured to a vacant bench that sat beneath the building.

"Sure." He agreed.

They led the dogs across the street and tied their leashes to the arms of the bench as the two teens sat back.

"Somehow even though it's snowing I feel hot." Ryouko mumbled to herself. However, Ryoushi overheard and his eyebrows furrowed.

"Are you okay? You're not feeling feverish again are you?"

"No, I told you I'm perfectly fine." She sighed. "It's just something about the Winter that manages to make your throat dry when ice is raining from the sky." She shrugged.

"Your face looks a little flushed though." The boy noted as he slid off one of his gloves. He reached forward and pressed the back of his hand against her forehead and Ryouko stiffened in surprise. "You feel a little warm." He concluded.

"I-I'm fine." She contradicted, still not fully comprehending what had just occurred. Ryoushi gave her a doubtful look but he forgot whatever he was going to say.

A harsh gust of wind blew again and he heard the faintest rattling kind of sound from above.

His body moved on its own before his mind could even realize what was happening.

Lunging forward, he threw his arms around her, earning a surprised cry from the girl as he pulled her down onto the ground alongside him. Seconds later, several icicles plummeted down off the gutter they sat beneath and shattered on the bench where they had been sitting.

The dogs barked in alarm as the pieces bounced around before they settled.

Ryoushi opened his eyes quickly and looked down at the girl beneath him with frantic eyes.

"Ryouko-san! Are you okay?"

She was shaking a little from the shock and he could feel her heart pounding, but as he got a closer look at her she seemed to be unharmed.

"For the third time today, yes." She grunted.

"Good." He sighed in relief.

A moment passed.

"Ah…Ryoushi?"

"Yes?"

"Could you um…" she trailed off. The green-eyed boy blinked and realized that he was still lying on top of her awkwardly.

"S-Sorry!" he cried, quickly getting off of her and standing to his feet. Ryouko pushed herself up from the cold ground and accepted the hand he was offering her and he pulled her up. "I'm sorry about that." He repeated, wiping the snow off of her back and out from her long, golden hair.

"Again what are you apologizing for?" she wondered. "T…Thanks." She said.

"It was nothing." He responded bashfully. "I was trained to always listen carefully to my surroundings and pay attention to my senses."

Her eyes flickered briefly across his face, not intending to linger there, but she immediately gasped when she caught sight of the red gash.

"Ryoushi! You're bleeding!" she cried. A long scratch ran horizontally down his left cheek, crimson slowly oozing out of it.

"Oh, what, this? This is nothing." He insisted, wiping his face with his glove. "See? It's hardly even bleeding."

"But what if it gets infected?" she fretted. "Trust me, I've dealt with my fair share of scratches and when they get infected its nothing to joke about."

"Calm down, it's not that deep even." He urged. "Really." Now he sort of understood how she felt whenever he panicked over every scrape she obtained on their missions.

She took a deep breath. "…Alright then." She sighed, looking up. "Well now that there's nothing left up there it should be safe." She diagnosed.

"True." He smiled and they both sat back down. "You're sure you're not feeling sick?"

"I'll admit I'm sick when you admit you're hurt." She countered.

"So you _are_ sick?" he blinked.

"What? N-No! That's not what I meant!"

"Then what _did _you mean?"

"I…I just meant…oh never mind." She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. Ryoushi chuckled at her girly actions.

The dogs shuffled around their feet before lying down next to each other for warmth. The snow continued to fall at a steady pace for a while afterward and Ryoushi merely contented himself with just staring up at the orange street lights and watching the snowflakes tumble down. He stole a glance over at his companion to see what she was up to and saw that she was watching a different street light. _Great minds think alike?_ He wondered.

But as he looked closer, he noticed that her arms were trembling slightly. He shook his head as he slid out of his coat.

"Ryouko-san." He altered her attention.

"W-What is it?" she failed to keep the stammer out of her voice as she turned to face him.

Ryoushi placed the coat over her shoulders and bare arms.

"You were cold all along, weren't you?" He guessed. "I'm sorry for not realizing it sooner."

"No I'm not _that _cold." She insisted, but her trembling form and the way she was clasping his coat in her fists contradicted her words.

"Don't lie." He murmured, resting his arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to him. She gasped as her back bumped against his chest. "You don't have to pretend to be strong around me, you know." He informed her. He felt her let out a shaky breath.

"You got me." She mumbled.

Then, she began shaking as though all the shivers she had been holding in all afternoon were assaulting her all at once. He wrapped both his arms around her and squeezed her close to him. It was obvious that she was trying not to shake so much, but her breaths were trembling as much as she was, easily giving her away.

"It's okay." He told her. "I'm not going to think of you as weak just because you get cold just like every other person in the world."

Her reply was a small 'humph' but she did not argue with him, but instead tried to share some of her warmth with him.

Time ticked by and Ryoushi took in her elegant scent; wild yet somehow tamed with a hint of frost. Her hair was freezing and was beginning to feel like ice so he tightened his embrace on her. At last, her shivering subsided and Ryoushi finally deemed it acceptable to let her go. "Come on, we should get home." He decided.

"Ryoushi." She said, a little more loudly than she wanted to. He gave her a questioning glance that deterred her. "N…Never mind." She trailed off, her russet irises focusing on the ground. Ryoushi stared at her a moment longer but decided not to pry.

"Hey!" he called down to his dogs who were fast asleep on the ground, huddled together. "Get up you guys." The gray and white Akitas stirred and blinked their eyes to look up at him before they whimpered, just like little kids who had been scolded by their mother to wake up too early in the morning.

"Come on. On your paws." Ryoushi reached down and with a massive effort, lifted Françoise clean off the ground and sat her on the bench in between Ryouko and himself. The loss of her playmate had Elizabeth on her paws in an instant, her ears flat with frustration. Francoise whimpered as well and the two teens chuckled. "How pathetic." Ryoushi commented, lifting the gray dog up onto his lap.

"But they're just too cute!" Ryouko cooed. She scooted closer to Ryoushi and patted the dog's head. Elizabeth circled her feet, demanding attention as well. Ryouko laughed lightly and petted her as well. She then leaned down to give the white Akita a kiss between the ears as she had done earlier.

The gray dog on Ryoushi's lap licked his face and he laughed, pushing her cold wet nose away. Ryouko let herself giggle only long enough to last a heartbeat before she leaned in to kiss Francoise as well.

But just as she moved forward, the Akita leaped off of her owner's lap and landed on the ground.

It took a moment for either of the teens to realize exactly what had happened, but Ryouko found herself with her lips kissing Ryoushi's wounded cheek.

She pulled back with a baffled gasp and opened her mouth to make some excuse or something along those lines, but no words could be formed. She merely met his eyes with a look of bashfulness that his eyes reflected.

"S…Sorry." She finally managed to say.

"Why are you apologizing?" the boy asked with a grin. "My cut feels so much better now!"

"Does that mean it hurt before?" she asked worriedly.

"No, that's not what I m-"

"I know." Ryouko smiled, a little mischievously.

"Touché." The boy bowed his head. Ryouko allowed herself to giggle once more. "We should go now." He decided.

Ryouko stood up beside him and began sliding off his coat but he stopped her. "No, you keep it." He insisted, indicating his long sleeves. Guilt swept over her expression but she nodded nonetheless. "Your hands look cold too." He noted her quivering fingers that were still grasping his coat around her shoulders.

Ryoushi offered her his palms and she gave him a quizzical look but slowly extended her hands onto his. He gently traced his fingers up to her wrists before rubbing her hands between his to warm them up. "Better?" he wondered.

"Much." She smiled. She took Françoise's leash and waited for Ryoushi to take Elizabeth's before they headed off back to Ryouko's apartment.

The falling snow tickled their eyelashes as they walked back along the sidewalks, leaving fresh footprints and pawprints behind them.

All too soon, they arrived at the building where they were required to part ways. Ryouko slid his coat off and handed it back to him along with Francoise's leash.

"See you on Monday." He said softly.

"Yeah." She agreed.

He turned to leave but Ryouko refused to end it like this.

"Ryoushi!" She called out after him. Once he stopped and turned back, he found her walking back up to him.

"Yes?"

"A-Ah…I…I really had a great time today." She admitted. "We…we should do it again…sometime…just the two of us." She suggested.

Ryoushi could not believe his ears.

"S-Sure!" he agreed excitedly. "Any time." He added quickly. "Any time at all."

"Okay." She smiled. "And Ryoushi?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you. For everything."

She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek again.

This time, however, Ryoushi was prepared and he kissed her cheek in return.

"No need to thank me." He smiled.

"S-See you Monday." Ryouko bowed quickly. "Bye."

"Yeah. Bye."

As the couple turned away from one another, Ryouko raised her fingers to her cheek, her heart racing as she entered her building.

Ryoushi wanted to do a triple midair back-flip from his sheer happiness.

Certainly now, he was one step closer to loving the wolf.

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**A/N: Sorry, I realize this was a little fast and all over the place but it was late when I wrote it so please refrain from flames ^^;**

**Otherwise I hope you all enjoyed! Check out my other Ookami-san fics as well!  
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**Please review! **


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